Review reveals gaps in climate-driven road landslide risk

A systematic literature review published in Natural Hazards analyzes 80 publications from Scopus and Web of Science spanning the years 2009 to 2025 to assess how researchers evaluate the impact of climate change on road infrastructure through landslides. Authored by Johnny Vega, Nini Johana Marín-Rodríguez, and María Isabel Hurtado, the study distinguishes itself from previous reviews by requiring the simultaneous presence of four specific domains: landslide processes, road infrastructure, risk assessment, and weather or climate drivers. This specific inclusion criterion allows the review to isolate studies that address the complex interplay between environmental changes and critical transportation networks, rather than examining landslide-climate interactions or road vulnerability in isolation.

The bibliometric analysis reveals a growing interest in this field, with publication output increasing by 11% per year during the study period. However, the geographic distribution of this research is heavily skewed. Asia accounts for 45% of the studies, while Europe contributes 26%.

In contrast, South America and Africa together contribute only 8% of the total publications. The review records these regional proportions to describe the current distribution of scientific output in this specific intersection of hazards and infrastructure. Methodologically, the review highlights a disconnect between hazard assessment and comprehensive risk analysis.

While 90% of the analyzed studies assessed landslide susceptibility or hazard, only 21% completed the full hazard-consequence-risk chain. Furthermore, quantitative climate projections were used in only 25% of the studies, and just four studies combined these projections with a complete risk chain. The review also points out significant gaps in modeling network connectivity and indirect economic losses.

Network connectivity was modeled in only 9% of the studies, and indirect losses were quantified in just 10%. The authors identify three main methodological families used in the literature: physically based models, data-driven models, and network models. Physically based models represent changing triggers but rarely exceed the slope scale in their spatial resolution.

Data-driven models assume that present factor-landslide relationships persist, while network models quantify consequences but seldom use climate projections. To address these gaps, the authors propose a framework linking climate projections, susceptibility and hazard assessment, road exposure and vulnerability, network consequences, and risk management. Based on their findings, the authors derive specific recommendations for road authorities, transport agencies, disaster risk managers, and policymakers.

They advocate for the use of multi-temporal inventories that include detailed road attributes, allowing for a dynamic assessment of vulnerability over time. Additionally, they recommend multi-scenario network assessments that account for different climate projections and their potential impacts on road connectivity. The authors also suggest integrating climate-sensitivity analyses into technical guidelines.

Subject of Research: Systematic review of climate-driven landslide impacts on road infrastructure

Article Title: Landslides impacting road infrastructure under climate and weather influences: a systematic literature review with descriptive bibliometric insights

Article References: Vega, J., Marín-Rodríguez, N. J., & Hurtado, M. I. (2026). Landslides impacting road infrastructure under climate and weather influences: a systematic literature review with descriptive bibliometric insights. Natural Hazards, 122(22), Article 699. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-026-08467-1

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1007/s11069-026-08467-1

Keywords: landslides, road infrastructure, climate change, risk assessment, bibliometrics, systematic review, natural hazards, transportation, vulnerability, network connectivity, impacting, road